Certification work in the Swedish Ecotourism Sector- A study of Nature’s Best certified companies

Abstract

Ecotourism is said to be one of the major innovations to ever have occurred within tourism and is expected to grow in the following years. In comparison to ordinary tourism, ecotourism has a focus both on what the traveller does and what impact the tourism activities have on the environment and the surrounding society. Ecotourism is indeed a beautiful concept but the fact is that these principles and practices are often corrupted and watered down. If ecotourism should overcome those problems and be able to fulfil its potential there is a need for clear and measurable standards and this is where certification programs have their role. In our study, we analyse what it means to tourism operators in Sweden to be an ecotourism certified organisation and understand why they chose to engage in such practices. The exploratory study is based on nine companies certified by Nature‟s Best and includes deep interviews and observations. The findings from the interviews help us to create a collective identity concerning what it is to be an ecotourism company as well as the meanings of ecotourism as a whole and companies who share this identity are more likely to engage in ecotourism certification practices. The perceptions of Nature‟s Best as well as the causes behind certification work are also important aspects when gaining an understanding for why Swedish tourism organisations engage in ecocertification practices.